WINSTED >> The Winchester Board of Selectmen moved Tuesday night to consult town attorney Kevin Nelligan about the possibly “improper” appointment of Richard Dutton to the Board of Education on Feb 11.

“There were a number of things that happened that evening procedurally that I don’t think were proper,” Mayor Lisa Smith said.

Board of Education members, along with Smith, allege that chair Susan Hoffnagle performed the vote improperly by not correctly conducting the motion and not allowing members to cast a ‘no’ vote for the three candidates. According to Republican board of education member Ray Rabago, Hoffnagle’s acted with the purpose of getting “her friend,” former BOE member Richard Dutton, back on the board.

Advertisement

Monique Parks-Abreu, a Democrat, vacated the ninth BOE seat on Jan. 29. If the appointment of Dutton is ruled to have not been legal, the education board would have until March 1 to correctly appoint a new member. If the seat goes unfilled for 30 days, it is up to the board of selectmen to appoint a member.

James Roberts, one of the education board members who abstained during the vote for the three education board candidates, spoke during the public comment portion of Tuesday night’s meeting. Roberts said he appeared to present the Board of Selectmen with a “very practical problem, which is you don’t currently have a legally constituted Board of Education.”

“I think what happened last week was a tearing up of the rulebook in order to achieve a certain, specific end.” Roberts said. He said that every action the board takes from this point forward will be “open to legal challenge for the simple reason that we don’t have a legally constituted Board of Education.”

Selectmen were not unanimous in their endorsement of getting involved with issues regarding another town board.

“These are elected positions for the Board of Ed. They don’t come under our jurisdiction,” Selectman George Closson said, noting that challenging these types of actions “should be done internally.”

Selectman Jorge Pimentel said that looking into the issue wouldn’t hurt.

“I really don’t see any harm in having Kevin Nelligan look and see what happened,” he said.

Daniel Langer, also a selectman, said that he wasn’t at the meeting but from what he’d heard “they decided they wanted to follow their own rules.”

“All the boards and commissions that we have are either elected or appointed. They have to realize that they represent our town,” he said.

Dutton said Monday that he plans to attend the next education board meeting as a regular member.

“My policy right along is, I’ve never chaired the board, and it is the board’s position that the chair speaks for the board,” Dutton said Monday. “And rather than have different stories going in different directions, I would prefer to speak to that. On this subject, you should listen to what the board chair says.”

The Board of Education next meets on Feb 25 at 7 p.m. at Winchester Town Hall.